This is one of my fav thread..
Ok guys I tried reverse ring process (which I dint knew how to do previously)..
tested my 50mm(reversed) alongwith the kit 18-55mm lens.

Had to sacrifice two filters to make an adapter of my own and there I was to get awesome results..

@Vicky, @no1lives - have u created ur ids??? I need some help from u guys..
NEways have a look on the setup-





And this is the outcome-

@SP: Pretty good result there.. I've recently got the 50mm f1.8 for the 400D and am loving the quality that this lens provides. Although the built quality is pretty cheap, and you would know when the lens is focusing, but this is absolutely NOTHING compared to the sharp colors and contrast that the lens is capable of...Loving it!

@SP: I am back with my old id..

Your results are pretty good.. Some things you may want to consider when using such a setup:
. The magnification is greater when the primary lens (the one on the camera) is of a longer focal length. I use my 70-300mm zoom along with a 58/f2 MF lens for ultra high magnification work. The 18-55 can be a bit short at times.
. If you use a zoom lens as the primary lens, then with most zooms, the zoom ring can be used as a coarse focus ring and the focus ring as a fine focus ring.
. Make sure that you protect the rear element of your reversed lens. A good idea would be to go to the local camera market and then search for used MF 50/1.8 or 50/1.7 lenses. You can use any lens as long as it is in good condition and does not have any fungus. Pentax, Minolta and Canon MF lenses are typically a lot cheaper than the Nikkors in the used market. For real cheap option, try finding a old Russian Zenit camera with the 50mm lens.
. When doing photography at such high magnifications, the DOF is really shallow, so make sure that you align the subject and the camera perfectly.
. At extreme magnifications, it is difficult to even find the subject, so forget about using this for any kind of a subject that can move. Insects are going to be next to impossible to capture.
. To get sharp shots w/o any motion blur, use an electronic flash or a studio strobe. You can try using a tripod, but I have found that you need a really really steady tripod + head to be able to get sharp shots in ordinary lighting conditions.
. You should be able to get reversing rings in the market. In delhi's chandni chowk market I found a dealer who would make those for me on order, but he wanted a minimum of 5-10 pieces in an order. Prices with him were real cheap.. arnd rs. 50 per ring. If I get the chance, I might just buy 5-10 from him one of these days and sell the extra ones to ppl from this forum. Currently I just stuff the 50mm lens onto the hood of the 70-300mm lens with the help of newspapers.. works fine enough for my uses.

Another alternative to using reversing ring with a prime lens is to attach a close up diopter in front of a telephoto lens. I have a Nikon 3T close up filter which along with the 70-300mm gives some pretty decent results. The close up diopters can be as expensive as a cheap 70-300 lens and these days the only ones available easily in most common sizes is the Canon 500D and in some sizes the Canon 250D.

For those of you with a Canon EOS camera, the procedure for reversing a 50/1.8 is slightly more complicated. What you need to do is to set the camera in manual aperture mode with the lens mounted, then set the aperture to 1.8 and press dof preview. While camera is in DOF preview, either unmount the lens or remove the battery. This is the only easy way to keep the aperture open on some EOS cameras. EOS users, pls correct me if I am wrong. If you are a Nikon user, then you need to just set the aperture to 1.8 on the aperture ring to keep the aperture open on lenses with a aperture ring. Nikon lenses w/o an aperture ring need some form of a jugaad to keep the aperture open on a reversed lens.

-- no1lives4ever

Here are some photos I had posted earlier which used this technique of reversed lens:









-- no1lives4ever

no1 and his humoungous posts are back! Welcome no1..

I have got a brand new Canon Powershot A590 IS .nice point and shoot camera. also well supported in Linux(makes me happY!)
sample pic :

@no1- Thanks for the comprehensive reply ..
Out of curiosity (I may sound stupid) , is the screw thread of all 52 mm lenses are standard? I think I can get hold of old minolta lenses !..

Another question- If I get hold of an old yet good minolta lenses (zoom lens) so are there any adapter available to fit it on my D40 body??
If yes then its a news for me !

Hey all camera lovers, a lot has happened in the digicam world (especially SLR) in the past few days.

the D90 has come with video for the first time on a DSLR.

and then Canon has announced the upgrade to the venerable 5D in the form of MarkII, utilising an upgraded version of the full frame sensor from the 1Ds MkIII. This camera is gonna be in so much demand that it will be pretty hard to ever find in stock - this is pretty clear from the fact that it pretty much was the only thing people were reading about on DPReview.

and to trump these all in the super-pro range, Leica announced a DSLR in a larger format than the 35mm full frame.. the Leica S2.

You may read this and more around the web, while I try to save money and pray to the lord that somehow the 5D MkII demand is met by canon's production capacities.

the 52mm filter thread is almost always the same for all lenses with a 52mm filter thread.. there are some very old lenses with different threading and some which use bayonet mount, but in general u can use any lens with an appropriate coupling/reversing ring.. You can also mount larger or smaller lenses, my 70-300mm has a 62mm filter thread while my 58/f2 has 52mm.. this makes it easy to just stuff the prime lens in the lens hood..


Well.. fitting any non f mount lens on a nikon is typically a big task as the f mount has one of the longest film plane to lens flange distances.. the canon eos cameras can otoh mount virtually any lens with a simple mechanical adaptor.. But those are expensive..

-- no1lives4ever
PS: Whenever u r buying a used lens, esp an older one, check very carefully that there is no fungus and that the lens coatings have not been cleaned off in an attempt to get rid of lens fungus..

For those out of the loop, Photokina 2008's in full swing! Woohoo!

good gyaaan....
gr8 info for reverse ring process...
thanx speed and no1...

Yeah, so many exciting cameras anounced. I am drooling

Nice information there no1. The results are pretty effective.

@Speed
Very nice result you got there.

Regarding the recent developments in Canon, the introduction of wide angle in the prosumer cameras is a very welcome move. It is what people have been missing in the consumer level cameras. The lens in the current G10 is not the 6x lens, and it is 5x now with a wide angle of 28 mm. The lens is said to be of high quality.

We also have to see how the CMOS lens in the SX1 IS will work. The 20x zoom also is a new standard. We have to see how the lens behaves compared to the old one in S5IS.

well...since other manufacturers are busy taking out cameras..

D90 i must say is a drool over the 50D..jukebox hope you listening....there are now a dozen videos of d90 used for shoots and ofcourse the video feature..the only thing of that will be of course the price.


and like i said while other manufacturers are busy taking out cameras..my fav company is busy taking out a new sensor!!SUPERCCD EXR.

now that is what i will be looking forward for..the incorporation of SR and HR together into one universal sensor...

info is here.
Fujifilm announces Super CCD EXR: Digital Photography Review